Social support and quality of life among lung cancer patients: a systematic review

Abstract

Objective: This systematic review analyzed the relationships between social support and quality of life (QOL) indicators among lung cancer patients. In particular, the patterns of relationships between different social support facets and sources (received and perceived support from healthcare professionals, family, and friends) and QOL aspects (emotional, physical symptoms, functional, and social) as well as the global QOL index were investigated.Methods: The review yielded 14 original studies (57% applying cross-sectional designs) analyzing data from a total of 2759 patients.Results: Regarding healthcare professionals as support source, corroborating evidence was found for associations between received support (as well as need for and satisfaction with received support) and all aspects of QOL, except for social ones. Overall, significant relations between support from healthcare personnel and QOL were observed more frequently (67% of analyzed associations), compared with support from families and friends (53% of analyzed associations). Corroborating evidence was found for the associations between perceived and received support from family and friends and emotional aspects of QOL. Research investigating perceived social support from unspecified sources indicated few significant relationships (25% of analyzed associations) and only for the global QOL index.Conclusions: Quantitative and qualitative differences in the associations between social support and QOL are observed, depending on the source and type of support. Psychosocial interventions may aim at enabling provision of social support from healthcare personnel in order to promote emotional, functional, and physical QOL among lung cancer patients.

Changes in and Determinants of Quality of Life in Patients With Advanced Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer Undergoing Initial Chemotherapy

“…Better QOL among patients with advanced NSCLC under chemotherapy has been consistently associated with younger age (Henoch, Bergman, Gustafsson, Gaston-Johansson, & Danielson, 2007;Liu et al, 2009); better economic status (Liu et al, 2009;Pan, Xu, Wang, & Zhu, 2011); being employed (Hermann & Looney, 2011); stronger social support (Liang, Jiang, & Li, 2007;Luszczynska, Pawlowska, Cieslak, Knoll, & Scholz, 2013); better performance status (Henoch et al, 2007;Hermann & Looney, 2011;Iyer, Taylor-Stokes, & Roughley, 2013); better treatment response to chemotherapy (Liu et al, 2009;Zhan, 2008); less frequent, severe, and distressing physical symptoms (Hermann & Looney, 2011); and less anxiety and depressive symptoms (Chen, Yu, & Yang, 2008;Hermann & Looney, 2011;Iyer et al, 2013).…”

Asociación entre rumiaciones y malestar emocional en pacientes recién diagnosticados de cáncer

“…El apoyo social, de acuerdo con la literatura previa (26,27) , se asocia con los niveles de ansiedad y depresión, aunque no alcanza la significación en los modelos multivariados.…”

“…El apoyo social es una variable determinante en la adaptación al cáncer (26,27) y por ello se hace necesario controlar su efecto. Dicha variable se ha evaluado mediante el cuestionario MOS de apoyo social (28) (MOS Social Support Survey; MOS-SSS).…”

Marital status and its effect on lung cancer survival

“…All of these could have direct and/or indirect effects on survival. Empirically, Luszczynska, et al (Luszczynska et al 2012) found that patients with perceived/received family support had improved psychological and physical quality of life. Stressrelated psychosocial factors have been shown to have a deleterious effect on survival in patients with lung cancer (Chida et al 2008).…”